Posted on 05/01/2023 6:48:41 PM PDT by Drew68
Legendary Canadian folk singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot has died at age 84.
Victoria Lord, a representative for the family, says the musician behind classic Canadian ballads "Early Morning Rain" and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" died at a Toronto hospital on Monday evening.
His cause of death was not immediately available.
The Orillia, Ont., native rose to fame in the early 1960s after a move to Toronto opened doors in the thriving Yorkville music scene, and hooked him up with fellow folkies Ian and Sylvia Tyson. They became great admirers of his work and covered two of his tracks.
His 1965 debut album "Lightfoot!" ushered in a new folk voice and by the turn of the decade he eased rather effortlessly into the pop scene, making his first appearance on the Billboard chart with 1971's "If You Could Read My Mind."
Lightfoot's popularity peaked in the mid-1970s when both his single and album "Sundown" topped Billboard -- his first and only time doing so.
But his chart positions did little to slow him down in the final decades of his career when he built a reputation as one of the stalwart road musicians, in spite of various health challenges.
Like seeing Jeffery Epstien go away.
I used to sing his song “Beautiful “ at weddings, back in high school/college. His music meant a lot to me. May he rest in peace.
Fellows, it’s been good to know ye.
Every highway helps me slip away...
😢
his music is timeless
rest in peace
He did. And he came back after a very debilitating abdominal aneurysm that laid him out badly for a long time.
With dirge, celebrate this great of the greats,
Whose ballad kept their mem’ry eternal.
The man could sing.
RIP
My favorite ❤️
I’m seriously bummed out by this. Gord was a true National Treasure. It leaves a huge hole in Canadian music.
He had so many wonderful songs... :(
RIP. Cool dude.His songs were and always be on my wide variety playlist.
First concert I ever attended. It was at the Bradley University fieldhouse in Peoria, IL. Probably about 1971?
I remained a fan ever since.
“If You Could Read My Mind” was the first song I learned to play on the guitar.
R.I.P., Gordon. Thanks for the music.
This is a blow. My brother asked us if we would go with him to see Lightfoot last September when he was on tour, but we had already planned a trip to see our daughter. You never know how much longer you have. I don’t know if my brother ever went to see him, but he really enjoyed his music. And it would’ve been fun for me to see my brother loosen up like that.
On my checklist now, go do something meaningful with my brother. Even though we live literally a thousand miles apart from each other. Accomplish before the end of the year.
He is one of my favorites. So many beautiful songs
He was one of the greatest, an easily recognizable singing voice, RIP indeed.
That’s cool. RIP Mr. Lightfoot.
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